You are here Professional Development > Special Certificate

Assessment and Feedback in Higher Education

This module explores the principles, purposes, opportunities and challenges of assessment and feedback processes in higher education and the impact of assessment and feedback on student learning.

Through critical engagement with relevant literature, participants will reflect on their current assessment and feedback practices at module and/or programme level and they will be encouraged to identify opportunities for enhancing and/or re-designing these practices that take into account effective assessment design, inclusivity, and academic integrity. Participants will also be supported to design and implement feedback strategies that enhance and support student learning. The use of the VLE to support the implementation of effective assessment & feedback practices, including rubrics, will also be explored.

The module supports a programmatic and inclusive approach to assessment, offering participants a range of assessment options.

Module learning outcomes

On successful completion of this module participants should be able to:

Discuss the principles, purposes, opportunities and challenges of assessment and feedback in higher education through critical engagement with literature;
(Re)design an effective assessment and feedback strategy informed by relevant theories/frameworks;
Justify decisions underpinning the design of an assessment and feedback strategy within the participant's own professional context/discipline;
Articulate/illustrate how their professional values about academic practice have been influenced by engagement with this module.

Assessment

Participants must demonstrate continuous and consistent engagement with weekly activities (e.g. online discussions) to proceed to final submission. Some of these will be collaborative in nature whilst others can be done on an individual basis. 

Module participants taking the module on a for-credit basis should also select one of the following two assessment options: 

OPTION 1: A research-informed (re)design of an assessment and feedback strategy

This strategy should be suitable for use in the participant's own discipline or professional context. Participants are encouraged to be creative in their approach while ensuring alignment with the principles discussed in the module.

OPTION 2: An ePortfolio

This ePortfolio should demonstrate the participant’s achievement of the four module learning outcomes. Using a platform of their choice (e.g. Google Sites, OneNote*), participants are encouraged to utilise a range of mediums (e.g. text, video, audio, imagery) to evidence their engagement and learning. These might include critical summaries of key articles, reflections on existing assessment/feedback practices, explorations of practice change, video ‘snippets’ explaining assessment change, learning materials intended to develop student assessment literacy, etc.

*Note: the ePortfolio must be shareable with academic practice staff and downloadable for future review by examiners.
As ePortfolios are practice-focused and developmental, participants should commit to developing their ePortfolio as they undertake the module, rather than at the end.

Please see Rubric on pages 43-44

OPTION 3: A critical reflection as part of the SpCert Professional Teaching Portfolio
Note: This option is only available to those completing the Professional Teaching Portfolio for the purposes of the SpCert.

If you re completing the Professional Teaching Portfolio, for the purposes of the SpCert Award, you should develop a critical reflection on the module’s impact on your practice, as one of the four elements of the portfolio This critical reflection may be text-based or developed as a digital artefact. (c.2,500 words or equivalent for the critical reflection)